Do they also cater to philosophers? 🙂
Jewish doctors, lawyers and business executives too busy for the formal study of their faith can now order in religious lessons, thanks to an organization whose rabbis make office calls.
Aish HaTorah, an Orthodox Jewish educational network based in Israel, has four rabbis on call in New York City as part of its Executive Learning Program, and similar outreach programs in cities around the world including Los Angeles and Washington.
One of the New York rabbis is Stuart Shiff, who was crisscrossing Manhattan on a recent wintry day to give free private lessons to clients including a partner in an accounting firm and a neuroscientist at a prominent hospital.Â
“If you don’t have time, I tell them, I’ll come to you before the stock market opens or after it closes!” said Shiff, a father of six from New Jersey.
Muffti could start Rent-a-Philosopher (RaP), so people could hire him to parties to impress their guests with the smart people they know. Plus he’d get free party snacks that way.
If Muffti lived in New York he would gladly sell his time to rich people going around door to door informing them about atheism and its benefits. He would like to see people reconnect to their lack of faith.
Oh, and Chutzpah, I figured it was about money; afterall, they’d otherwise offer free services to parents that cannot afford “brand-name” yeshiva tuition or any yeshiva tuition for that matter. Cum grano salis, it reminded me a bit of those Jehova’s Witnesses that show up on my doorstep now and then to talk with me about Kingdom-Come. 😉
Rabbi-podcasts might sell…
No Froylein, Aish McRabbis do not cater to philosophers. (These young “Rabbis” earn their smicha faster than you can say “I’ll have a large coke and fries with that burger”.) They cater to business men and women who can make large donations in appreciation for all the free insight they receive from these Door-To-Door salesmen of religion inspiration. They are given some sort of bonus or commission based on the amount of money they raise for Aish. They are sure to eventually teach the lessons of how working people get the “heavenly credit” for the mitzvahs done by the “scholars” they support.
They also “cater” to young upper-middle class “disenfranchised” secular Jews whose parents then make donations to the organization in gratitude for the grandchildren they have once their adult child “becomes frum”.
They have to constantly recruit newcomers because eventually the newly religious will have 4, 5 & 6 Yeshiva tuitions to pay for.
If you have no money or your family has no money, don’t expect an Office Visit or House Call.
Didn’t you ever here the expression “there is no such thing as a free lunch”?
There’s a phone-a-rabbi program here in Austin.